A Walk Through the Desert
Sarek looked at Styik as he rushed by him to hurry to the front door. Styik had stopped cutting his hair. His hair seemed to often be in his eyes and he had to brush it away from his face with his fingers, when he was not slicking it back. Sarek could not help but to think of how abnormal the boy was, then... he realized that he was curious as to where the child was going. Sarek walked in the same direction and saw Styik returning from the door with a package. He questioned, "Styik, what is it that you have received?"
"Data slates on new developments in neurological deterioration. I need to study them before my session with Tirza in the learning bowl. She always programs new information into the database." Styik answered, opening the package. He then said, "And before you ask, I have no intention of cutting my hair. Sytar wants me to wait to cut it until he gets his first haircut."
Sarek tilted his head at this and asked, "Is it logical for you to take hygienic advice from an infant?"
Styik laughed and said, "You know that I am not that concerned with logic, Grandfather." He rushed up the stairs and Sarek could hear his feet running down the hallway. The Vulcan sighed. Yes, he did know that Styik was not concerned with logic, but it still generally surprised him, the depth of the boy's illogical ways. The main reason that Styik's illogical ways were such a shock was the fact that the child was beginning to be regarded by the elders as a possible future great scholar of New Vulcan.
The elders monitored his test results closely, and even began to convince Sarek that the boy needed a suitable mate. Sarek presented the idea to Spock:
"The elders are impressed with Styik's testing results, all across the board. They believe that he will come to be a great scholar of our race. Do you think that it is time to consider his heritage?"
Spock stared at Sarek for a moment, then said, "His heritage is being a child born of a hate crime, of a Romulan and a V'tosh katur former priestess apprentice... Dare I venture to say that such a heritage is so unique that there is not a preconceived method of steering him?"
Sarek said plainly, "He is still not too old for the kahs'wan, yet, he is nearing an age at which success in the ritual may not be honored. He should complete the ritual and you should attempt to find him a suitable mate."
"Nyota has already expressed to me that she will not support the decision of Styik having the kahs'wan. If I attempt to send him into the ordeal to maturity, there will be problems between us." Spock replied.
"Spock, there will be problems in any relationship with a human, but this fact must not alter the fact that Styik is Vulcan, even more Vulcan than you are, being that his father was Romulan, and we share a common ancestry. He is old enough to choose for himself whether or not he should go through the ritual."
"Certainly, you realize that Styik will do nothing to upset his mother." Spock said.
"I realize that he will be conflicted. He will not intend to upset Nyota, but he also wishes to prove himself to you and to this house." Sarek said.
Spock sighed and said, "I shall speak with he and his mother."
Styik was using the mind cards with Sytar and Nyota when Spock entered their family room. Sytar was on Nyota's lap and Styik was looking at a card while Nyota held Sytar's hand. "Rose." She said. Styik smiled and showed her the card with the rose on it, then looked at another. "Teddy bear." Styik showed her the card with the teddy bear. Spock walked over to the table and kissed Nyota on the forehead. She looked up and kissed him on the lips. Styik cleared his throat, and Nyota said, "Cucumber," to identify the card. Spock stroked the side of her face and sat next to Styik.
Styik placed the cards down and looked at him to ask, "Why do I suddenly think that you are about to say something that no one in the room will like?"
Spock lifted an eyebrow and said, "My father is concerned about you becoming too old to pass your kahs'wan. If you are to successfully undergo the ritual, the time is now."
Nyota frowned at Spock and said, "This has been discussed."
"The discussion is now reopened, Nyota." Spock stated, plainly. "Styik has even more Vulcan blood in his veins than I do. I passed through kahs'wan unharmed. Styik practically went through his own variation of the test already when he was homeless and orphaned after escaping the laboratory which held him prisoner. It is imperative to his heritage that he simply passes the official test."
"Why is it imperative that he risk his life to prove that he is mature?" Nyota asked, very agitated.
Spock sighed and answered, "It is imperative that he complete the test because it is a major component of his heritage. Styik is advanced in knowledge beyond his years in comparison to other Vulcan children his age, and it is believed that with proper conditioning and attention, he may become one of the great scholars of our people."
"They once thought that about Sybok," Styik pointed out.
Nyota said plainly, "I have not changed my mind about this."
"The decision is not up to you, Nyota." Spock informed her. "There are but two more months before we are scheduled to return to the Enterprise, by that time, we must know whether Styik is to come with us, or to remain here to continue on in his Vulcan teachings. Not completing kahs'wan could hold him back in his learning."
"Going through kahs'wan could get him killed!" Nyota snapped.
Spock replied as evenly as anything else he ever said, "Living on a starship could get him killed, Nyota, but as our child, is it not a part of his heritage? This ritual is a part of his heritage, too."
She glared at Spock, then looked at Styik. She said, "Styik, I do not want anything to hold back your education. You know that I love you and that I am simply concerned about you. I know that you try hard to please your father and your grandfather, but you do not have to do anything that you are not comfortable with. There is no pressure for you to, or not to go through with it."
"I am going to do it." Styik stated, without a second thought.
She forced a smile and said, "I thought that you would. Your father must be so proud." She threw Spock angry eyes, through her smiling expression and nodded her head. Nyota stood up and said, "I am going to go for a walk." She handed Sytar to Styik and Styik immediately touched his brother's fingers to try to explain to him clearly the purpose of the kahs'wan.
Spock followed Nyota out of the bedchamber and down the hallway. He walked a few steps behind her all the way out of the front door and through the walkway, outlined by stones before she turned around and said to him, "I really do not appreciate the fact that you and your father saw the need to disregard a decision that you and I already made!"
He did not wish to make her any angrier when he said, "The decision was not ours to make. The decision is Styik's alone, and he has chosen." Make her angrier is exactly what he accomplished.
"Only because you brought it up and made a Sarek name drop! Before just now, Styik has never expressed any need or desire to go through with this thing, and now he is going to do it, and I am supposed to just accept it?" She was practically yelling at him, outside of their home, on New Vulcan.
"You must accept it. He has chosen." Spock answered. He was now slightly agitated with her.
"He is not going! I do not know how I am going to stop him, but he is not doing this." She said, shaking her head.
Spock took a deep breath. He knew that his next words may not please her, but he also knew that they were words that she might need to consider. He posed them as a question, "Nyota, how is your reaction to Styik's decision any different than Dr. Uhura's reaction to you enlisting in Starfleet?"
She stared at him with a pained expression, for a moment, then shook her head and admitted in a small voice, "I don't know, but it is different. Styik is only a child."
"Styik is a Vulcan child." Spock corrected.
"Styik is my child!" She, now, corrected and shook her head. After she thought about his question for a while, and the strain that it put on her relationship with DR. Uhura, she said, "Just, don't let me see him go. Make sure that I am not around. I have to support his decisions, or he will never be comfortable making them." She took a deep breath and said, "I am going to take that walk, now."
"Contact Vulrak." Spock said.
"Spock, no one is going to touch the woman who got away from Sybok and Livingston Kurok, and no one is going to touch the ward of Vulrak." She was exhausted from her reaction to Styik's decision.
"Many V'tosh katur males forget the implications of consequence when reacting on whims to exhibit a display of machismo." Spock warned.
Nyota simply began to walk away. She did not feel like discussing why this conversation was stupid. So, it was not safe for her, a grown woman who had already proven herself strong and capable, and who was known to be the wife of one who would never let it rest if something did happen to her, to go for a damned walk... but it was not only safe, but expected for a child to wander around in the wilderness on his own for however long? She could hardly wait to be back on the ship, away from New Vulcan and away from Vulcans. She went into the garden.
Sarek had one of the largest gardens on New Vulcan, and he had allowed her to have certain vegetation and flowers added that she wished to have access to. Her favorite portion of the garden was the portion where her favorite flowers were planted, including a few edible African flowers which her mother's father used to grow in his garden and use in his cooking and tea. Nyota kneeled at the section of flowers and just looked at them for a moment.
She thought about when she was about Styik's age. Once, she and Toimu sneaked into their grandfather's garden and took a few tomatoes, then they hid in a tree and waited for Yakpazauh to pass nearby, and they threw the tomatoes at him. Toimu was a much better shot than she was, but it was more of the thrill of doing it that entertained her than her success in hitting their older brother. Yakpazauh climbed up the tree after them, with tomato remains dripping off of his little afro and Toimu hit the ground running, but Nyota had climbed further into the tree, realizing that she could not get down with out passing him. She slid further onto a branch until she heard a crack and the next thing she knew, her body and the branch were crashing to the ground below.
Nyota screamed on the way down and Yakpazauh and Toimu both rushed to check on her. She was crying, as she had landed on the branch and had scrapes on her back elbows, and legs. Yak picked her up and hurried her into the house, replaying what happened to his parents and they quickly examined her. She seemed fine. She seemed not to be seriously hurt, but they wanted to bring her to a doctor, just in case. As it so happened, she was fine. She was not seriously hurt, and everyone was so happy about it, that she and Toimu were not even punished for their prank, but they were warned that they would regret it if anything similar ever happened again.
Now, Nyota thought to herself about the fact that her parents were concerned by the thought of her being hurt while playing a prank, and here she was supposed to be able to be comfortable with the thought of her son being out of her reach, out of area to call for help or be rescued in the event that things do not go as he plans... She allowed herself a brief cry, then straightened her face as she could hear Vulrak approaching. She wiped the few tears that she had cried away from her face and looked towards him as he sat down in front of her.
"I am not going to say anything to you to suggest that you need to reevaluate the way that you feel. You are perfectly entitled to your feelings and you should not try to change how you feel about something this important. I will say that I believe with a large portion of my heart that Styik will be perfectly fine during his time away and that he will come back a better being because of it." Vulrak stopped talking and stared at Nyota.
"That still does not help." She said.
"I did not intend to help. I said that simply to inform." Vulrak said. He touched her hand with the tip of his finger and showed her his confidence in Styik's ability. She smiled at it and he said, "That was my intention to help."
"I am going to miss you." She said.
"You will, for a little while. Then, you will be so happy to be back home that your missing of me will become a thing of the past which only sporadically occurs, when you think that I could have helped along the way."
"That is a terrible thing to say." Nyota snapped."
"Perhaps it is, but I believe that it is true. You certainly will not miss me in the same way that you have been missing your shipmates for the last ten months." He observed.
Nyota sighed and looked at Vulrak, seriously. The family had been discussing the possibility of Styik not returning to the Enterprise with Spock and Nyota, in order to complete a Vulcan education, but now that he would be having this maturity test, the thought of him staying here became more real to her. She began speaking, "If Styik decides to stay on New Vulcan..."
"If you even attempt to ask me to look out for him, I will be highly offended. I will treat Styik just as I now treat you." Vulrak said, looking at her as though the notion of him not doing so was ludicrous.
She smiled warmly at him and leaned forward to place her head against his shoulder, "Thank you, Vulrak." She sat up quickly. She was still as affectionate as she had ever been, but she tried her best not to do things like that, for the sake of not disturbing Spock's control over his inclinations towards jealousy. She looked around, and did not see him. She found herself relieved. Not only did she not want him to see her showing Vulrak any affection, no matter how harmless, but she still was angry with him, and just did not want to see him, period, for the time being.
Styik knew that his mother would react poorly to his choice of having his kahs'wan, but he did wish to complete the process. He was not particularly concerned about proving himself to other Vulcans, nor was he concerned about his heritage. He just knew that he could do it, and therefore wanted to do it. It would not be the first nor the last time that he did something to prove himself, well, to himself. When he did these things, his mother generally thought that he did them to impress Spock, but the truth was that he did the things that he did to see that he actually could, if he just went for it.
Self motivation was a hell of a thing for a nine year old to be so well into, even a nine year old Vulcan. Because after the kahs'wan was over with, they all went right back home, mature, but not independent. They still lived with their parents, they still attended classes to prepare for their actual adulthood. Styik found the ritual itself just one more chance to prove his superiority over others to himself. Spock had ventured out by himself for a week. Styik knew that he could at least double that and probably do more. His main problem was the fact that New Vulcan solo life really did not seem to be harsh enough for the kahs'wan.
There were no shavohk in the deserts, lurking in the air for the children to die so that the bird could eat the rotting carcass. Were there shatarr – poisonous lizards dwelling beneath the rocks, which could attack him? Would he have the chance to be faced with the poisonous snake called the k'karee? The desert would be harsh, but not as harsh as the old Vulcan's deserts. Now that he thought of it, just a week in the desert wilderness of New Vulcan would never do for self approval. He stared at the walls of his room, trying to figure out an appropriate length of time for the level of self approval. He had become too excited to continue playing with the baby. He had turned the infant over to his father and went into his room to meditate. His meditation was to stare at the walls and try to construct the amount of time that he wanted to be gone, and the area of land that he wished to travel to for his process.
He tapped into his mental abilities, as Vulrak had taught him to do, to see if he could reach out to Vulrak. Perhaps Vulrak was near enough that he could reach him... Styik, are you in danger? He suddenly heard.
He laughed and replied, No, I have a quick question. There was a pause.
Styik, this talent should be used in emergencies. You alarmed your mother, was Vulrak's response.
Styik frowned now and asked, Well, since we are already here now, can I ask my question? Another pause, then Styik said, And I do not wish for her to know about this particular question.
What is it? Vulrak asked.
What is the most dangerous region of New Vulcan's deserts? Styik asked.
Nyota tried not to think about where Styik might be or what condition he might be in. Instead, she told herself: He is fine. He is managing well. He can do this. Styik had decided to leave on his own, without a departure time or well wishes from anyone. He had simply sent a mental message to her, which had awaken her from her sleep: Mother, just remember that I am fine and I can do this. I have left to initiate my kahs'wan. I will return as soon as I am satisfied with my results. She jumped out of bed and saw Spock already awake.
She looked at him and he said, "Please calm down, Nyota. He is fine, and he can do this. He has alerted me, as well." She wanted to crumble, but Spock would not feign confidence. If Spock believed it to be true, it was most likely true, but she was awake for the day. There was no way that she would return to sleep that night... six nights passed.
Nyota rushed into Spock's office, after her shift was over and found him calmly staring out of his window, looking upon the city. He turned to see her when she entered and she said, "It has been a week. Why hasn't he come home?"
"Styik never vowed to return in week's time." Spock pointed out, turning back to face the window. She sighed and walked over to his desk, where she sat. He did not glance at her, or even ask her to remove herself from the top of the desk, without looking at her, as he had the last time that she used the top of his desk as a seat. He did not respond to her action, at all, she noticed.
She guessed, "You are worried about him too."
"I am not worried. I am curious to know when he will be returning. Generally, the time of the kahs'wan is planned. Styik made no such reservations. I am confused, if I have any emotion about the fact."
"If you have any? I have been researching Vulcan deserts. From what I have read, everything in the damned desert is poisonous."
"New Vulcan does not have all of the same creatures that Vulcan once did. We obtained as many of them as were off world as we could, however, all of our desert creatures were not preserved for this planet." Spock informed her. That was not comforting. So, there would only be some poisonous creatures there, not all of the old ones. She stood up and walked over to him. She wrapped her arms around him from behind and he stiffened to her touch.
She chuckled, slightly and said, "There are no laws which say that I can not touch you in this office." She said it in reference to a rule that they had early on in their relationship not to be affectionate in the Starfleet uniforms and not in his office at Starfleet Academy.
Spock merely stated, "I realize this, Nyota." He still did not relax.
She let go of him and sighed. Then she asked, "Will you have any emotion when he returns?"
"I do not wish for you to question me about my emotions, Nyota." He said, calmly. She reached for his hand, but he simply kept his focus outside of the window, not showing her any sign of any of his emotions. He told her, "Being treated has assisted me greatly in the control of accidental transfer of emotions through physical contact."
"I can not feel your emotions unless you wish for me to." She said.
"Precisely." He answered and pulled his hand away.
Nyota shook her head in disbelief, then asked, "Why is it that at the times when I need emotional comfort the most, you shy away from my emotions?"
"I do not share the belief that I "shy away" from anything." He said.
"Well, what would you call it, when you would leave me for days after I have just been captive of a madman for weeks and tortured, humiliated, frightened, and nearly killed? Didn't you think that it could have helped me to be with you? To know how you felt about me? About the way that things were at the time? instead, you just shut me out and fold into yourself and leave me to do the same?" She asked with a bitterness and an anger in her voice that he could not understand. That had taken place months ago, and he believed the entire family to be beyond it.
He replied, evenly, "I believe that you handle things quite well on your own. It is when you are exposed to my emotions that you seem to lose that ability. If I show you my emotions right now, it will not help you to feel better about Styik's kahs'wan. It will hurt you, and I refuse to willingly cause you additional pain in your time of current sorrow." She glared at him and he looked at her. The look tortured him inside, but he would not show it. He had become too controlled to allow this hurt to seep through, and he did not wish to expose any hurt to her, at all. Nyota nodded her head and moved towards the door. Spock reflexively reached out and grabbed her wrist, swiftly, but gently. "Please, do not be angry at me for protecting you."
"I do not need, nor did I ask for protection, right now. I asked how you feel." She snapped and jerked her arm away. "I am going to go have dinner at my father's house." She said before leaving the office.
Spock returned his stare to outside of the window, where he had a view of one of New Vulcan's most dangerous deserts, on the horizon. He sensed that Styik had gone there, and had been staring out into it everyday for hours, since Styik left. The last thing that he wanted to reveal to his wife that Styik might be in one of the most dangerous places on the planet, and that he himself was afraid for the boy's safety. She was illogical. She did not know what she wanted. She did not want to know this information. She did not want to know this fear.
Styik winced, slightly as he stuck the tiny quills of a cactus through his flesh in attempt to close a serious wound inflicted upon him by a dangerous creature, one he had not even expected to meet. This one was known as the mor'gril. The mor'gril was a psionically aware wolverine animal, and attacked Styik when he realized that Styik would attack him first. The wolf had bitten Styik on his left side, but Styik grabbed the animal by the head with both hands and sent him cowering away from him. Styik staggered about, in exquisite pain until he could find a cactus. He was relieved to find it and carefully plucked quills from it to mend himself, although he knew that this bite could potentially be fatal, if not properly tended to.
The mor'gril seemed to follow him around, at a safe distance. Styik glanced at the creature laughed and announced, "You have met your match, mor'gril. How many Vulcan children have you fed on?" He stared at the animal as it kept its hiding place in the desert shadows, behind a mound of sand. Styik examined his amateur stitched up wounds and sighed. He wondered if he had accidentally sent off any alerting mental waves to any of his family. He wondered if Sytar was crying upon him accidentally revealing that he had been attacked.
Styik sat in a meditation pose and closed his eyes. He could imagine the mor'gril watching him, wondering why he would shut his eyes while the creature was lurking about. Because I do not fear you, Mor'gril. Styik thought, hoping that the creature could pick it up from him. The creature did not have any reaction which would indicate that he had received the thought. Then, Styik stated, "You are said to be a myth. Others do not believe that you exist. Perhaps you do not. Perhaps my supremely overactive imagination fabricated the entire exchange and I am indeed laying in my own bed, asleep, awaiting morning, for a session in the learning bowl." Styik opened his eyes and was face to face with the wolf creature. "Or perhaps you are here, and it was my destiny to meet you." They stared at each other, eye to eye. Neither of them blinked.
Then, something unexpected occurred. The creature lowered his head, almost as if bowing to Styik. Styik smirked and said, "I am Styik, Mor'gril. Are you named?" The wolf tilted his head, slightly and stared at Styik. Styik reached for the animal, and it did not rush away. Instead, he bowed again and Styik touched its face. He connected his mind to the animal's own. "I am pleased to meet you, Arev." Styik said, "And I do not make friends easily." He smiled at the creature and admitted, "I think that I am going to die here, with you, so it is only fitting that we know each other." The mor'gril leaned down to where he bit Styik and began to lick the caked green blood from the wounds. A time or two, he stuck himself with the quills, but he still continued to help the child whose wounds he was responsible for. "Do not get offended if I tell you that you are probably more unstable than me." The wolf stopped and stared at Styik.
Styik pulled himself up from the sand and began to walk. Perhaps it was time that he returned home. He estimated that weeks had passed since he left. It took him several days to arrive in this particular part of the city, and it would take even more to get back, with these wounds. He noticed that Arev was following him. He paused and looked at the animal, but kept going.
The adventure had been minimal. In fact, aside from his brush with the mor'gril, life in one of the harshest deserts of New Vulcan was not particularly exciting. It had been, difficult, though, as the cacti were scarce, and he had no way of cooking anything that he could possibly kill. He found himself meditating more than he ever thought he would. One night, meditating had not worked and he screamed repeatedly, as loudly as he could and threw punches and tired himself out with rage and frustration and hunger... then he fell to the sand and went to sleep. He awoke a few hours later and decided to meditate. Meditating had never pained him and made him too weak to remain awake.
He checked his wounds sporadically, on the way home. This kahs'wan was a stupid idea. How often would he ever get caught up in the desert? At least now, it was over with. He turned around and saw Arev still shadowing him. "I hope that you do not seriously intend to go where I am going." Styik said. The animal walked right up to Styik and stood next to him. "You are a mor'gril. There is no way that my father would allow me to take you as a kelek-aushfa." He and the animal stared at each other. Styik shook his head and kept walking. These creatures were said to have psychic abilities, perhaps there was something that the animal knew that Styik did not.
Styik paused and looked at the animal. Maybe he should meld him again, to see why he was following him. He touched the animal's face again and tilted his head in confusion when he caught a glimpse of himself unconscious, and the animal dragging him by his robe. Styik's pulse raced and he decided to attack the animal, but Arev ran from him and kept a distance behind him, knowing that Styik needed to touch him to administer the type of disturbing pain that he had earlier. Styik called out to him, "I am warning you, mor'gril. If you attempt to take me for food, you will have a fight on your hands!"
Styik saw a rock, which he decided to try to use as a weapon. Arev rushed over to where he was as he picked up the large rock and something bit him! Styik made a sucking noise and dropped the rock onto the creature. The rock fell on the creature's back and it squirmed beneath the weight of the rock. Styik sighed and kicked the rock over to try to release the animal. It was not the creature's fault that Styik had intruded beneath the rock. Styik laughed and said, "Shatarr, I was hoping that I may meet you." Arev pushed Styik forward with his nose.
The child walked for a while, but eventually, the lizard's poisonous bite began to get to him. He collapsed to his knees and said, "Arev, come to me." Arev had been right behind him, trying to push him forward, and merely walked around to the front of him. He laughed when he saw the animal's face. "I told you I would die with you." He hugged the animal, but Arev shared a thought with him, one that he could see in his own mind, one of the wolverine dragging the child home to his family. Styik shook his head and said, "Oh no, Arev. You can't bring me back like this. I would rather they just assume that I'm lost out here than to see me dead..." The boy could hardly see, now. The wolverine took his robe with his teeth and began to drag the child towards where he could sense his home was.
Spock tilted his head at the strange image before him and rushed from the veranda. Nyota looked at him leaving, and out near the horizon. She saw a form of something approaching the mansion, but she could not tell what it was. Styik! She rushed out, behind Spock with Sytar's hand in hers. The baby was barely walking, so she gathered him up and fled outside. She became nervous when she heard Spock say, "Father, there is a mor'gril approaching." She flew the word through her mind, and realized that she had read about it when researching desert Vulcan dangers. It was some type of wolf. As Spock, Sarek and Ambassador Spock rushed outside, Tirza reached for Nyota's arm, to keep her from rushing out as well.
Both of them went to a window where they could see. "Styik!" Nyota cried out and placed her hand against the glass. Tirza covered her face with a hand, but quickly removed it. Nyota touched Sytar's hand and asked, "Is he there? Is he there, Sytar?" Sytar showed her an image of Styik, just as alive and healthy as she remembered him. She rocked the baby in her arms and began to pray that he was right. Sarek leaned to the animal and it appeared to Nyota that he was melding with it. Then, Sarek spoke with Spock and Ambassador Spock. Ambassador Spock came rushing into the mansion as Spock and Sarek took Styik away in one of the transports. Tirza rushed to Ambassador and asked, "What condition is the child in?"
Ambassador Spock looked at Nyota and responded, "He was bitten by a shatarr. The mor'gril carried him here. By our statistics, Styik should have been dead, however, they are bringing him to the medical institution for treatment." Nyota began crying, and Ambassador Spock walked over to her and placed his hands on her shoulders, "I believe that they will get him there in time enough to treat him for the poison. The mor'gril seems to think that he will survive." She laid her head against his chest and cried a bit longer. He touched her arms, but did not respond much more and looked at Tirza, who did not react to the exchange, but kept her eyes on them.
Tirza eventually walked over to them and gently pulled them apart. "I will see to my sister." She said. Ambassador Spock lifted an eyebrow, conscious of the fact that Tirza's motives for ending the interaction may not have necessarily been sheer concern for Nyota. He simply bowed slightly at her as she collected Nyota on her arm and said, "I will escort you to your quarters. Spock will contact you as soon as he has a definite diagnosis for Styik."
Nyota shook her head and said, "You do not have to do that. You shouldn't be walking up all those stairs and that far in your condition." Tirza's eyebrow now flew up. Nyota said, "I'm sorry. I know that Vulcans do not discuss certain issues, but I mean, it's clear that you're very pregnant, and I don't want you wearing yourself out." Tirza looked down at herself, then at Nyota. Nyota covered her mouth with her hand and asked, "Oh, God, you are pregnant, aren't you?"
Tirza tilted her head and said, "Yes, I am. I have been since my wedding; however, as you have stated, Vulcans do not address such things. I have wore all of the robes available for maximum discretion, and yet, you have noticed and openly voiced your notice. You must remember that Vulcan women are far more capable than human women when in my condition. I shall escort you."
Nyota thought to herself, if Tirza had been pregnant since her marriage (Ambassador Spock's Ponn Farr), she would be about eight months pregnant, therefore, she would be having her baby around the time that they would be leaving the planet. She wondered if she would get a chance to see the baby. She wondered how she would feel about a baby with Spock's DNA, as though it were Spock's, but not being Spock's. "The same way that I think of Sytar, as someone else's child, who happens to share my husband's genes." Tirza said. Nyota smiled and Tirza explained, "I was not trying to receive any of that from you."
Nyota and Tirza went into the family room and sat on the couch. Even eight months pregnant, Tirza sat with her back erect and perfect poise. Nyota smiled, slightly. She asked, "Is it a girl or a boy?"
"A girl." Tirza answered.
"Styik was wondering about that." Nyota said.
Tirza tilted her head and responded, "No, he was not. He was the first to tell me that she existed, and that she was a girl. He is very observant of such matters, I am informed. If one believed in callings, one might presume that he has a calling involving babies. I certainly can envision such a future for him." Tirza looked straight ahead, and Nyota knew that this was her way of trying to remain positive about Styik's current welfare.
Nyota said, "I can too. He loves babies. He is wonderful with Styik. He was wonderful with Suzak too."
Tirza now looked at Nyota and said, "I know that you believe that Sybok is not a suitable father for the mentioned boy, however, I must share with you my belief that if a boy does not know his father, he will spend a great portion of time trying to figure out who his father is, even a Vulcan boy." She lowered her head, then said, "Please, excuse my openness, Lady Nyota."
"No, it's fine. I know about Vulrak and you... about the fact that you raised your son without him. The things that are done for love!" She said, somewhat bitterly, in reference to T'Pring, but thinking of Livingston.
Tirza stated, "I am not sure what that comment means."
"I was speaking of T'Pring tearing up your relationship in the name of loving you." Nyota said. Tirza nodded, shortly. Now, Nyota smiled a bit, "Did Ambassador Spock ever tell you that he had a crush on you as a child?"
"My Spock would never use such a word, not even if it was the closest word available, unless pointing out that it was the Vulcan equivalent to the human word." Tirza replied, flatly. Nyota stared at Tirza, then Tirza said, "He did indicate to me that he believed himself to have some slight emotions for another version of me in his other time line."
"That matches up with my Spock. My Spock felt the same way. I have this theory about that." Nyota said, noticing Tirza's face brighten slightly. Vulcans enjoyed the sound of the word "theory" more than any of them probably cared to admit. Nyota shared, "Perhaps Spock had his Vulcan equivalent of a crush on you when he was younger because he was bonded to T'Pring."
Tirza frowned, and it was a visible frown. "It is not proper to discuss T'Pring's shortcomings. She was my friend, and I wish to respect her memory. For all of the positive things that she did, she should not be counted for allegedly having these feelings that others have credited to me."
"I wasn't insulting her. I am sorry that I brought it up. I am just trying to keep my mind off of the fact that minutes seem like forever right now, because I am worried about my son."
Tirza's face softened to the words. "I am concerned for the child, as well." She said.
After a while, the communicator sounded and Nyota picked it up and said, "Spock?"
The voice was strained and sounded sick, but it was a child's, it was Styik. "Hello." He said. She took a deep breath and he asked, "Am I in trouble for leaving the way that I did, and staying gone for as long as I did?"
Nyota thought back to a nine year old girl who fell from a tree and the look of relief on her parents' face and she said, "No, Sweetie. Mother's just so glad that you are alright."
When the Vulcans returned home, Styik saw the mor'gril standing outside of the door. He sighed and walked over to him, "Hello, Arev. Thank you for bringing me home. You do realize that I can not keep you." The animal simply stared at him. Spock and Sarek approached, as well. Styik bent over to pet the animal and laughed lightly when it licked his face. Sarek tilted his head and said, "I have never witnessed such a young child successfully tame such a wild beast."
Styik scratched behind the wolf's ears and said, evenly, "Don't get offended, Arev. My Grandfather does not realize that you are as sophisticated as we are. He meant nothing in calling you names." Styik sighed and pressed his forehead to the wolf's forehead. The door opened and Nyota gasped at the sight, holding the baby in her arms.
Spock walked over to her and said, "I believe he has made a new friend." Styik stood up and looked at Nyota. The very first time that she had ever seen him, he had a maturity about him that she could hardly believe, and now with his black and gray hair slick back and his frame thinner than it had been when he left, he almost looked old. She handed Sytar over to Spock and opened her arms to accept Styik. The child met her embrace and said, "I told you not to worry." She laughed and cried at the same time. Sarek's eyes glazed over, a bit and she knew that she probably reminded him of his late wife. Some days, she felt really bad for him, because of his longing. Right now, she was too happy for anything to interfere.
Sarek said, "It has been some time since the boy has eaten properly. I will have the servants prepare a feast to acknowledge his entry into maturity." Sarek went into the mansion. Spock collected Nyota, with an arm around her shoulder and she kept an arm around Styik. Styik looked at Arev. He said, "He saved my life."
"The answer is no." Spock stated.
Nyota looked at the animal, then at Spock and asked, "Oh, just for a little while? Just for tonight? The last time we let someone in, we ended up with a gift." She squeezed Styik's shoulder for emphasis.
Styik added, "He is a sophisticated animal. We will not need to feed him, but simply to allow him to run free to hunt." Spock pressed his lips together, and Styik said, "Okay, let him be a welcome home gift for me. In the event that you decide he is not a suitable pet, I will release him."
Nyota gave Spock a hopeful and excited smile. Styik's face appeared eager and even Sytar looked expectant.
Spock sighed and said, "As your mother requested earlier, just for tonight. This decision will require more thought." He looked at the animal and it bowed politely to him. Spock sighed again, then said to his family, "The three of you are so illogical." Sytar laughed as they entered the house with the wolverine walking in behind them.